assorted errors and warning on launch in ubuntu

[idcrook]

Am encountering messages with errors and warnings with emacs snap. emacs launches and runs. however, I don't think it's able to find/use some of the fonts installed on my system?

snap list | grep emacs
emacs              26.3                        296   stable    alexmurray          classic

installed on ubuntu 19.10.

debugging snaps is foreign to me. for the first group of errors, have tried things like:

GIO_MODULEDIR=/snap/emacs/current/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/gio/modules emacs
LD_LIBRARY_PATH=/snap/emacs/current/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/gio/modules emacs

but they had no effect.

emacs

/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/gio/modules/libgiolibproxy.so: undefined symbol: g_task_set_name
Failed to load module: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/gio/modules/libgiolibproxy.so
/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/gio/modules/libgiognomeproxy.so: undefined symbol: g_task_set_name
Failed to load module: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/gio/modules/libgiognomeproxy.so
/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/gio/modules/libgioremote-volume-monitor.so: undefined symbol: g_mount_operation_get_is_tcrypt_system_volume
Failed to load module: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/gio/modules/libgioremote-volume-monitor.so
/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/gio/modules/libgiognutls.so: undefined symbol: g_task_set_name
Failed to load module: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/gio/modules/libgiognutls.so
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/fonts.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/fonts.conf", line 6: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/fonts.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/fonts.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/fonts.conf", line 7: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/fonts.conf", line 7: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/fonts.conf", line 9: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-hinting-slight.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-hinting-slight.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-hinting-slight.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-hinting-slight.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-hinting-slight.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-hinting-slight.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-hinting-slight.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-scale-bitmap-fonts.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-scale-bitmap-fonts.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-scale-bitmap-fonts.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-scale-bitmap-fonts.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-scale-bitmap-fonts.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-scale-bitmap-fonts.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/10-scale-bitmap-fonts.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/11-lcdfilter-default.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/11-lcdfilter-default.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/11-lcdfilter-default.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/11-lcdfilter-default.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/11-lcdfilter-default.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/11-lcdfilter-default.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/11-lcdfilter-default.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/20-unhint-small-vera.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/20-unhint-small-vera.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/20-unhint-small-vera.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/20-unhint-small-vera.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/20-unhint-small-vera.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/20-unhint-small-vera.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/20-unhint-small-vera.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/30-metric-aliases.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/30-metric-aliases.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/30-metric-aliases.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/30-metric-aliases.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/30-metric-aliases.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/30-metric-aliases.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/30-metric-aliases.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/40-nonlatin.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/40-nonlatin.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/40-nonlatin.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/40-nonlatin.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/40-nonlatin.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/40-nonlatin.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/40-nonlatin.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-generic.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-generic.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-generic.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-generic.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-generic.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-generic.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-generic.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-latin.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-latin.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-latin.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-latin.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-latin.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-latin.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/45-latin.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/49-sansserif.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/49-sansserif.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/49-sansserif.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/49-sansserif.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/49-sansserif.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/49-sansserif.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/49-sansserif.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/50-user.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/50-user.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/50-user.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/50-user.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/50-user.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/50-user.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/50-user.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/51-local.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/51-local.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/51-local.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/51-local.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/51-local.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/51-local.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/51-local.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-generic.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-generic.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-generic.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-generic.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-generic.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-generic.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-generic.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-latin.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-latin.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-latin.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-latin.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-latin.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-latin.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/60-latin.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/65-fonts-persian.conf", line 34: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/65-fonts-persian.conf", line 35: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/65-fonts-persian.conf", line 35: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/65-fonts-persian.conf", line 35: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/65-fonts-persian.conf", line 36: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/65-fonts-persian.conf", line 36: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/65-nonlatin.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/65-nonlatin.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/65-nonlatin.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/65-nonlatin.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/65-nonlatin.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/65-nonlatin.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/65-nonlatin.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/69-unifont.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/69-unifont.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/69-unifont.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/69-unifont.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/69-unifont.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/69-unifont.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/70-no-bitmaps.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/70-no-bitmaps.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/70-no-bitmaps.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/70-no-bitmaps.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/70-no-bitmaps.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/70-no-bitmaps.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/70-no-bitmaps.conf", line 8: unknown element "description"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/80-delicious.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/80-delicious.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/80-delicious.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/80-delicious.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/80-delicious.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/80-delicious.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/90-synthetic.conf", line 4: unknown element "its:rules"
Fontconfig warning: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/90-synthetic.conf", line 5: unknown element "its:translateRule"
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/90-synthetic.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'translate'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/90-synthetic.conf", line 5: invalid attribute 'selector'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/90-synthetic.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'xmlns:its'
Fontconfig error: "/etc/fonts/conf.d/90-synthetic.conf", line 6: invalid attribute 'version'
Fontconfig error: Cannot load config file from /etc/fonts/fonts.conf

[albertodonato]

I see this too on a 20.04 machine. Perhaps it's due to a fontconfig version mismatch between 18.04 and 20.04?

[danepowell]

Same issue here on Ubuntu 20.04.

Note that Ubuntu 20.04 installs fontconfig 2.13.1 OOTB at the moment. I'm pretty new to Snap debugging, but it appears to me that the emacs snap expects fontconfig1: https://github.com/alexmurray/emacs-snap/blob/master/snapcraft.yaml#L104

That would explain the issue, but I'm not sure of the best fix. Upgrading emacs to use fontconfig 2 I suppose.

Linking other reports online:

• https://emacs.stackexchange.com/questions/52700/fontconfig-error-in-snap-version-of-emacs
• https://forum.snapcraft.io/t/problems-trying-to-snap-emacs/11355/6

[albertodonato]

I think the problem is that the snap is loading things from system paths like /usr/lib and /etc, which are accessible since it has classic confinement, but libraries versions in the snap don't match the ones in the system. The snap is core18-based, so it has libraries from 18.04.

[alexmurray]

There is a 'hard' problem here in that there is a single snap which needs to work across multiple Linux distros and multiple releases within those distros - so upgrading to fontconfig 2 as suggested above would then likely make the snap fail on older releases. As pointed out by @albertodonato, as the snap uses the system fontconfig paths there can then be warnings / errors - however these fontconfig warnings / errors on startup are not generally fatal. As such, unless this is specifically causing any issues at runtime (other than printing these messages at startup), I am inclined to close this bug since it is not a real functional issue IMO. However, if it is causing any actual issues please let me know and I will try see what can be done.

[albertodonato]

I guess an option would be to make it a strictly confined snap, but that will prevent it from opening files outside the user's home directory (and possibly /media through the interface). That would probably be too limiting for some users though.

I wonder if including fontconfig from 18.04 in the snap and mounting the corresponding paths as overlays would help.

[alexmurray]

Also strictly confined snaps can't launch other applications which are not explicitly bundled in the snap - so you wouldn't be able to just M-x compile or use gdb or git or so many other things easily from a strict snap. Hence why emacs is a classic snap.

[albertodonato]

Aside from fontconfig warning (that seem harmless) I also see this error at startup:

/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/gio/modules/libgvfsdbus.so: undefined symbol: g_date_time_format_iso8601
Failed to load module: /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/gio/modules/libgvfsdbus.so

Maybe gio libiraries could be bundled in the snap?

[danepowell]

Just speaking for myself, I gave up using this snap and moved back to Emacs via apt because I'm tired of my screen filling up with warnings every time I launch it. I get where you're coming from saying it's not a "functional" issue, but in some sense it is. If it stops people from using the snap because they are scared of or annoyed by the warnings, that is a very real issue.

[alexmurray]

@danepowell if it worries you, you could always use a shell function to suppress the errors:

function emacs () {  
    /snap/bin/emacs $* 2>&1 1>/dev/null | grep -v Fontconfig | grep -v libgvfsdbus.so; 
}

[alexmurray]

@albertodonato the gio related error should be fixed with f0b053370f4f7426e0c578f4b92f61105c3f1dd4 - however the fontconfig errors / warnings are proving more elusive - setting FONTCONFIG_FILE and FONTCONFIG_PATH to the snap specific locations doesn't seem to do the right thing (since it still goes looking at the fontconfig bits in /etc from the host) so I am still searching for a solution for that.

[albertodonato]

@alexmurray ah, great, thanks for the fix.

For the fontconfig issue, looking at /etc/fonts it seems it might be possible to include the content for that dir and /usr/share/fontconfig in the snap and mount them on the right places via snap layouts. I'm not sure though if that would work in practice, or would cause different issues.

[alexmurray]

Unfortunately layouts can't be used with classic snaps so some other solution is needed.

[bwesen]

Was hit by this now as well after a Ubuntu 20.04 upgrade. I realize it might not be a responsibility for this snap, but as 'emacs' is often the first command you do, and 'sudo snap install emacs' is Ubuntu 20.04's first suggestion (a very popular distro), and you IMMEDIATELY run into this problem it feels kind of serious to fix. Sure, it might be harmless, but it wastes time for everybody who tries it and gets several screenfuls of ERRORS and WARNINGS :)

Also, Ubuntu 20.04 should of course have packaged emacs traditionally as well, and suggest it as an option to install it as long as these errors and warnings occur in the snap, but seems unlikely they will want to fix it either...

Unfortunately I don't have any knowledge of fontconfig etc. and can't help suggesting any fixes, just wanted to note it's still a problem.

[quemeraisc]

Sure, it might be harmless, but it wastes time for everybody who tries it and gets several screenfuls of ERRORS and WARNINGS :)

Also, Ubuntu 20.04 should of course have packaged emacs traditionally as well, and suggest it as an option to install it as long as these errors and warnings occur in the snap, but seems unlikely they will want to fix it either...

Unfortunately I don't have any knowledge of fontconfig etc. and can't help suggesting any fixes, just wanted to note it's still a problem.

I have the same issue here, and I wouldn't consider it harmless. For emacs just does not start at all. The only way is with -nw which might not be usable for most. Ubuntu has an apt package for it, but that's an 26.3 (in 20.04), not sure if they are considering offering a more up to date version since there is a snap now ...

[alexmurray]

@quemeraisc if emacs does not start at all then this is a separate issue - can you please report this in a separate issue and provide as much details of your emacs configuration, what OS you are running (and what version etc), thanks.

[alexmurray]

I have switched the snap to use core20 as base (which means we use the fontconfig from Ubuntu 20.04 instead of 18.04) - this means that there are no fontconfig related warnings at startup for all Ubuntu 20.04 users, and now only 1 warning for Ubuntu 18.04 users and as such this issue should now be resolved for the vast majority of emacs-snap users. Please let me know if you continue to see any significant amount of warnings in the future.

[alexmurray]

Oh I forgot to mention - this new build of the emacs-snap should be available on the stable channel within a few hours.

[bwesen]

Great work! :) Thanks